The Heart
by anime mistress
Summary: This is my first fantasy/romance fic. It's kind of different from what I usually write. Anyways, this is about a search for someone's heart and the surprise rescue of an angel. They fall in love, but can they be together? Please review!


Disclaimer: This is my first fantasy fic. I just suddenly got the idea when I was eating breakfast the other day. I   
usually get stupid ideas when I'm not supposed to be thinking about them...man am I obsessed...anyways, as you all   
may know, I do not own digimon, though it would be a much better show if I did =0   
  
Yeah right, I'd probably screw it up. Well, I'm not going to have any author's notes because there is nothing to put   
an author's notes on this fic. Besides, that would just ruin the whole suspense of the fic if you pause. This fic might   
be kind of disturbing so I rated it PG-13...for strange unnatural occurings and blood descriptions. Just to let you know I am a Taiora fan, so don't be surprised if you see any Taiora in this one ;) Anyways, besides that, please enjoy, I only write these to entertain the readers =]  
  
(Sorry about the sideways punctuation faces, I'm also obsessed with those now...hehe...)  
  
  
  
The Heart  
  
  
Sora looked around her. Everything was made of shrubbery and dark forests. She noticed a shadow behind her in the shades of one of the bushes. She turned around, only to see leaves moving from where the figure had once been at. She walked ahead slowly, as if something was holding her back. She forced herself to go ahead. As she walked, her heartbeat became more rapid, beating against her chest like a drum. Sora was starting to scare herself.   
  
She walked through the dark, leafy, moist forest, cutting through the weeds and large leaves getting in her face. She heard a twig crack in the distance. She suddenly felt her feet move faster through the wet dirt. She continued to run, ignoring the thorns that made large scratches on her arm, ignoring the exhaustion her feet felt, ignoring the throbbing painful feeling that was occuring in her head.  
  
She ran and ran until...  
  
She moved through the last branches and leaves...there it was, pure light. The rainbow-like colors seemed to get absorbed by her skin as she stepped into the light. It felt glorious. The warm feeling of light touching her wounds...slowly seeping through them, numbing them for a while until she went across the light. She closed her eyes, feeling relaxed as the colors seemed to carry her through. She smiled, feeling a little bit drowsy but satisfied.   
  
Sora opened her eyes, seeing a bright red glass heart hanging in the sky, it seemed to just float there with an orb of contrasting colored light surrounding it. She pulled her arm up...it felt like air, as if she wasn't using her strength as she reached for it. She looked at her arm, it was in a blood-red covering...not blood, but some type of satin. She continued to examine herself...  
  
She was wearing a red dress that seemed longer than the end of a traditional wedding dress. It seemed to follow her, instead of her wearing it. She felt weightless...as if...it were paradise. She felt as if she were in paradise. Her arms were enclosed in red satin bands that went criss-cross, that went from her shoulders to her fingers.   
  
Her skin looked white, completely white, as if the light had gone through and overpowered the real color of her skin. Her hair was floating in the air, letting the light go through it, making it look more vibrant. She smiled...this was way better than the forest...she opened her eyes. She frowned, suddenly feeling discomforted. She looked behind her...there he was...the figure that has been following her.  
  
She watched her heavenly environment suddenly turn black. She was brought down to the ground. The light left her skin and slowly drifted away. The glass heart had also disappeared...but in a different way...it seemed to become more and more transparent. Sora reached for it once again...she felt it...but everything turned to smog. She heard the figure laugh as he walked up to her. She was sitting on the ground, backing away as he walked closer to her.   
  
The figure smiled at her as he touched the red satin fabric she was wearing. He put it against his nose and inhaled it. He stared up into her scarlet eyes. They were as beautiful as a rose, and they seemed to be brighter than the light that had once engolfed her...   
  
She backed away slowly, but knew there was nowhere to go. She stared up into the evil, glowing eyes of her predator. He moved closer to her, moving the fabric from her leg, revealing her skin. He gently touched it, stroking her skin softly. He moved his hand further into the dress, revealing more of her skin. She breathed uncomfortably as he did so, backing away from his hands. She looked at her leg...a dark liquid had started to smear her skin. She realized a pain developing. It stung her skin like a burning candle. The dark figure was cutting her.  
  
He took his hand off of her leg, revealing the knife protruding from his palm. Blood had started to pour from her skin. She stared at it, unable to move. She was completely terrified. He gently touched the blood and smeared it on her face in the shape of a heart. He laughed evilly as he grabbed the front of her dress. He pulled her up, making her stand with him.  
  
He pulled her close to him, putting his lips against her ear, nearly touching it...but not. Her heart had started to pound uncontrollably in her chest. Her eyes widened and her muscles became tense. The heavenly feeling she had felt was beautiful...even if it were for just a brief moment...and she wished she was back there now...  
  
"I have what you want," he whispered, making his words barely audible. A tear fell from Sora's eyes. Time seemed to stop as it did. She had no idea why she had suddenly produced a tear...it acted as if it forced its way out of her body. Why? She didn't know. Sora's surroundings were so quiet, she and the figure heard the tear fall to the ground. She stared at her feet. The tear seemed to expand. Become greater in size...she felt her bare feet get moist as the water consumed the ground. She looked around.   
  
Everything was different once again. She was in the middle of a vast ocean and the figure was gone. Suddenly, above her, she heard a horrible chuckle. It nearly deafened her, for her ears had never heard something so horrible as this. She closed her eyes...she pictured it...the Heart...it rotated and rotated uncontrollably. Suddenly, it just disappeared again. Sora longed to see it again. The Heart was the source of who she was...she needed it...but it was   
with...  
  
She heard a loud screeching noise above her. She closed her ears tightly, staring up above her. The figure held someone. She knew that person...her mother.  
  
"Don't touch my mother!" she yelled at the figure. The figure chuckled and took out a type of drill. The tip looked sharp...and the end looked like it was getting longer and longer.   
  
Sora saw the fear in her mother's eyes. She stared back. She watched helplessly as the figure thrusted the drill into her mother's heart...her heart...without hesitation. Sora felt nothing...when he did so. She thought she would feel a pain that was everlasting, that would never leave her for that woman was of her very own blood. That was her mother...the one that gave birth to her and would risk her life for her...twice if she had to.  
  
But still...  
  
Sora felt nothing. She had never felt like this before...what was happening? The figure stared at her, as if controlling her without her realizing it. She shook her head, putting her hands on it and screaming at the figure.  
  
She watched as the figure let go of her mother's limp body, falling right in front of her...but suddenly vanished before she hit the ocean. Sora stared at where her mother had been in the air.   
  
"Mother..." she whispered, touching the air. As she slowly put her hand down into the water, it felt as if the water were grabbing her. She looked around her, she became aware of the liquid hands holding her, giving her pressure as if they wanted her to follow them into the water. She was afraid, she didn't want to go, but the hands were bringing her even without her consent.  
  
She felt her lungs suddenly hold in oxygen. She looked at her surroundings in the water. It was beautiful. There were creatures she had never seen before. A white female figure with long white hair as white as her skin swam gracefully to Sora. She smiled at Sora, motioning her to follow as the liquid hands let go of her arms. She didn't move, feeling the oxygen leave her body so suddenly. She started to swim upwards, but the white woman called to her in what sounded like music. It echoed through the water...but it was not calling the other creatures, it was calling her and her alone.   
  
Sora, without realization, let go of her own breath. She breathed in oxygen that smelled of lilac. It was a beautiful scent that Sora had never inhaled before, but she did not notice of her own 'accident'. The woman took Sora's hand gently and brought her through the waters, passing through other creatures as beautiful as the white woman. She looked behind her, noticing the fluorescent light that were left behind as the woman swam.  
  
Where was she? Sora had no idea. All she wanted was to get the Heart back...her chest ached just thinking about it...it was like...it was connected to her in some strange way. But...it was connected to her...it was Her Heart.  
  
She looked up ahead, seeing three other creatures that looked exactly like the white woman. They all had hair that came to their feet, but their feet weren't visible for the long garments they wore were concealing them. She stared at their faces, studying their features. Their eyes were green, green like emeralds.   
  
The women gently took her by the arms and led her towards them. They sat her down on a lighted sphere of light. Her gaze moved from each woman to the next, staring at them questioningly. What were they doing to her?  
  
Sora noticed strong chains grasp at her wrists. She looked at them and saw gray chains clasping her wrists. She noticed sharp barbs as they clasped her wrists. She accidentally bit her tongue to hold in the pain as the barbs punctured her skin. She stared after the creatures. They stared at her, their emerald green eyes turning into something ugly. The pupil in the center of their eyes had turned into small green snakes that forced their way out of the eyes.   
  
Sora looked away as the three women fell to the ground...they had no pupils. Sora stared at the snakes that made their way through the dead bodies of the women onto the sphere Sora was on. She struggled to pull off the chains but as she did, the barbs scraped her flesh. She was tempted to scream in pain for the agony of having metal pressed up against her bones were tremedous. Sora closed her eyes tightly, hoping it would all just go away and she would   
just find the Heart.  
  
The snakes crawled up her torn dress, along the threads all the way to her arms. She watched as they opened their mouths...  
  
She knew what they were going to do to her...slowly...and painfully...poison her till she can't take the pain any longer. She shut her eyes once again, waiting for the feeling of sharp teeth perforating her skin...but she felt nothing for over six seconds. She dared herself to open her eyes...  
  
She saw a young man struggling to hold onto the small snakes. Yes, they were small, but they had a power beyond any power any man has ever had. Sora stared at the young man, hoping he would stop.  
  
The young man, came by the name Taichi. She watched as the serpents increased in size...getting to be almost twice as large as Taichi alone. He stared up at the large snakes with bravery in his eyes. He slowly pulled out a long gold sword from his back. It seemed to glow with a bright orange light that looked as if it were coming from him. Sora stared in pure awe as he slid his knife across the six serpents, splitting them all in half with perfect ease. The   
blood spurted in all directions. Sora continued to stare as the top half of the bodies fell to the ocean floor.   
  
He grabbed the edge of his shirt and wiped the blood off of the sword. He stared at the snakes as if they had been worms instead of gigantic murdering serpents then walked to the girl he had saved. Sora stared up into his eyes as he broke the buckle on the chains with a small blade. Taichi looked back into her eyes and smiled.  
  
"I am Taichi...what happened here?" he asked as he examined the ugly punctures on her wrists. Sora whimpered lightly in pain as he removed his shirt, ripping strips of it off to cover her wounds. Sora gawked at his frame, but quickly looked away.  
  
"I...I'm not sure," she said, looking at the destroyed satin dress as if she were interested in it. Taichi pulled her up from the sphere and grabbed her hand. He gently pulled her to a cave nearby, letting her settle at the end of it. Sora stared at her rescuer, wanting to thank him for saving her life. But before she could utter a word, he put a finger to her lips and softly held her wrists up. He noticed the white cloth that he had put on it was now completely red.  
  
He had never really looked at her face when he had saved her. He was concentrating on the serpents...Sora hadn't known, but deep inside, Taichi was as scared as ever. He looked up at her. Her eyes were so...bizarre. They were extremely gentle...and the color was different from any eye color Taichi had ever seen. It was scarlet. He studied her face. He had never seen anyone as beautiful in his life...he wanted to touch her skin...as if he was wondering what Heaven was like by doing so. He looked at her hair, each strand seemed to float carelessly on her head, he noticed that Sora had no intention of caring what her hair looked like. Something suddenly caught his eye. He noticed a heart shape on her forehead. He stared at it, Sora noticed his eyes looked afraid.   
  
"What is it Taichi?" she asked, her voice making a faint echo through the waters.  
  
"That mark..." he said, touching the mark. He rubbed it softly till it came off. He looked into her eyes questioningly. "That is the mark of the Heart," he whispered.  
  
"Yes...the figure that has been following me has it. I need to get it back...but I do not know where his location is at," Sora said softly.   
  
"Then we will look for him," Taichi simply said. Sora stared at him bewildered.  
  
"We?" she asked.  
  
"Yes, I will join you in looking for him," Taichi said.  
  
"No, I have to do it myself, I was sent here to find it and I will...without help," Sora said stubbornly, turning around. Taichi turned her back around and stared intensely into her eyes.   
  
"I...will...come...with..you," he said slowly. Sora stared back into his eyes. They looked so demanding and strong. She looked at herself, pleading and helpless. She was his opposite, and if she let him join her...as if she needed a guardian, then it would only show how incredibly helpless she was. Sora shook her head.  
  
"No."  
  
Taichi put his hands on her shoulders, "I will come with you whether you like it or not, understand?" he said letting her go. He walked to the other end of the cave. Sora stared after him disgusted. He can't make her do something she didn't want to. Sora thought for a moment, she could leave while he is sleeping...then he would never know. By the time he wakes up, she should be long gone. Sora smiled at her idea. She was thankful he saved her, but she needed to do this on her own.  
  
Sora looked above the water, it looked like nightfall has come. She walked soundlessly across the cave to look if Taichi was asleep. She smiled as she stared at his sleeping body lying on a large stone platform. She crept out of the cave.  
  
She looked above her, a group of checkered fish with the colors black and yellow on them passed by her. She swam to the shallow area of the water. The sky was completely black. There was no one and nothing in sight.  
  
Around her, nothing could be heard except the crashing of the thunder across the coal sky. She looked up, rain started to fall to the sand and ocean, they all seemed to stare at Sora. She looked at the drops suspiciously, they were eyes. Eyes that watched her every move as they began to increase in number. She looked at the unfamiliar surroundings. Everything was eccentric...nothing was real...or rather, real but unreal.  
  
She spun around hearing a loud clanging of chains. There it was...the beautiful heart she had seen before...rising above the black ocean...surrounded by chains...something was wrong...  
  
"Come back to me..." Sora whispered...but without really whispering it. Her lips didn't move to utter the words...it was more like ventrilaquism. Sora felt a strong longing for the Heart...but she was completely helpless in trying to get   
it.   
  
"If you want it, give me your soul!" a raspy deep voice said from the sky.   
  
"That is like giving my life away! I will do no such thing!" Sora yelled at the sky. She knew, for a fact, that this wasn't God. It was as if the World was turned upside-down, Heaven was below, and the fires of Hell were up above her.  
  
"Then you shall suffer!" the voice said, in such a demonic and deranged way, that just by the sound of it, it could kill a thousand angels.  
  
A large flashing ball of fire shot out of the black clouds, heading straight for her. The ball of fire came so fast, not even light could beat its speed. Sora only realized it had hit her when she felt a painful burning in her chest. She looked at her hands...they were completely covered in red...as red as anything has ever been red. Sora stared up at the sky, only to see it smile at her...the sky was smiling...smiling as it saw her fall to the ground...unconscious. The   
figure disappeared, leaving her to die.   
  
It seemed like hours before she woke up to find herself on the same beach, the ocean water was getting deeper from the rain pouring down into it. Sora felt the soft shore brushing against her. Sora looked at her chest, it was still covered in blood...but for some reason, it didn't feel painful. Sora stared at the water, it had turned into a clear aquamarine. Sora noticed her badly torn dress was all wet. She dug through the dress, pushing away the linens...there was nothing. The area on her body that the ball of fire hit was gone...there was no scar, no evidence that she was hit by it. Sora looked at the wounds on her arms, from her previous encounter with the sharp thorns in the bushes. They were gone. She looked at her wrists where the barbs had sunk themselves into her...they were all gone as well.  
  
Sora stared into the water. Was it because of that? Or did her wounds just heal from some anonymous power that had just saved her? Sora was urging herself to touch the water, but was nervous in what the outcome might be. She slowly, and hesitantly put her hand down on the water, her fingers barely touching it. When it did. She felt something amazing. It was as if the water had purified her when her skin made contact with it.  
  
Sora grabbed a portion of her dress and ripped it off. She put it on the water. It was perfect, the cloth didn't absorb the water. She put it under the water and closed it like a sack. She tied it up and hooked it onto what was left of her dress.   
  
Sora got up, looking at what was behind her...the forest. There it was again. But where was the figure up in the sky? And what if that boy, Taichi, comes after her? She did not want to have to deal with the two situations but...eventually, whether she liked it or not, she would.   
  
She walked towards it, the long end of her red dress being dragged after her. She walked inside, hearing odd noises that gave her a quick chill. Sora looked at her surroundings, everything was as dark as ever. She looked angrily up ahead of her. She would find that heart no matter what. Even if it costed her the life she had. Then again...she couldn't die because her life was the only reason the Heart existed. Sora shook her head and walked on, stepping on the moist bark with her bare feet. She noticed small transparent figures surrounding her as she walked through the forest. They sounded as if they were giggling as they touched her soaked hair, her face...Sora ducked timidly away from them, feeling embarassed as they circled her.  
  
One of the transparent creatures motioned her to follow, but Sora hesitated, realizing what had happened the last time she followed one of the strange creatures. But the transparent figure seemed friendly...but so did the white woman from below the ocean. What would they do with her? Would Taichi come? Sora doubted it. He would probably look for the Heart in his own way.  
  
The other transparent figures urged her to go. Smiling and playfully pushing her towards the other one. Sora walked cautiously ahead. As the figure went in front of her, she noticed it had wings...the most beautiful wings ever. They were clear with rainbow-like colors all over them that seemed to change color every second. It fluttered behind the small figure...it looked as though it were smiling at her. As if it wanted her, as it looked into her eyes, to trust it.  
  
Sora was never cold-hearted and thought that everyone needed a chance, so she went and followed the winged creature.  
  
She watched as the creature went ahead of her, motioning her to come to the old, dying willow tree in front of it. Sora noticed a sword. Why would she need a sword? To fight of the evil figure that took her Heart? Or just a protection against the not-so-powerful creatures around her?  
  
Sora went up to the sword even if she didn't know what it was for. She traced her fingers on the cover of the sword. It had a shape of a heart on it...the same design her Heart was.  
  
"Keep if for protection against Him..." the small figure said. Sora stared up into its friendly eyes and smiled. Before she could thank it, it left with the other winged creatures that were with it. Sora watched them as they flew away, then she turned back to the sword. She carefully picked it up, as if expecting it to do something to her before she got a chance to touch it.  
  
When she did, it started to glow a light red color. She pulled it out of the cover, raising it in front of her. She examined it, enjoying the feeling of the red light against her face as it shined.  
  
Sora picked up the sword cover and put it over her shoulder. She stuffed the knife back into the cover, walking back across the forest. When she crossed it...she saw something unusual. The area was a dirt path and in front of her was a fork in the road. Two different roads. Sora stared at each of them...one path was dark and mysterious...the other was a lighted path with a feeling of comfort as Sora stared at it. She looked back at the dark path...it was perfect.  
  
Sora started for the road. She heard noises that would usually send her over the edge, but this time she was determined to get whatever she wanted...back. She told herself that when she saw this figure, she would not be scared whatsoever. She would look him straight in the eye and...get the Heart back.   
  
She strutted ahead, gripping the sword in the pocket of the cover. She heard a loud cackling noise and twisted around staring straight into the eyes of a man with hooves. His pupils were red...as Sora stared deeper into them, she noticed something was swimming in the pupils of the manlike creature. He smiled at her and laughed again, showing his bloody drill-shaped teeth. Sora felt fear seeping through her, but she shook it away staring angrily at the creature with hate filling her bright scarlet eyes.   
  
The creature grabbed her dress, pushing the dress away from her neck, attempting to suck out her life. Sora grabbed its head and slammed it down on the ground. She grabbed its legs and twisted it towards the back of its head. The creature screamed a horrid piercing scream that sent a chill up Sora's spine. She ignored the chill, pushing his legs toward his head...suddenly, she heard a disgusting crack, as the creature's bones grounded each other until they broke apart. The piercing scream stopped and Sora dropped the creature's body to the ground. She backed away from it, breathing deeply with shock. She turned around and continued on her way. She knew...she could feel that that same figure was here...she could sense his presence becoming closer. She scowled under her breath as she walked ahead...without noticing the drill-toothed creature sneaking up behind her.   
  
The creature grabbed her around the neck with his arm and held on, pulling tighter, trying to choke her to death. Sora put her hands on his arm, trying to yank it off her neck without success. She choked slightly, as she tried to breath in fresh oxygen. This creature was trying to stop her from what she wanted to do...he was trying to keep her from getting her Heart back...she would destroy him...her eyes stared ahead with determined passion. She yelled as   
she pulled, with all her power, the creature over her, dropping him spine first to the ground in front of her. She coughed as she rubbed her neck softly, backing away from the creature. When she got herself together, she pulled out her sword and thrust it into the demonic figure. He stared at her with surprise in his red pupils.   
  
Insects crawled out of the creature's chest onto the sword. Sora stared at them and brushed them off her sword as she pulled it off of the demon. She wiped the black liquid from her sword. Black...for the creature's blood was not pure.  
  
Sora took one more look at the dead figure before walking towards the end of the forest. She heard rustling in the bushes on the sides of the road. She turned her head quickly to the direction of the sounds. There was nothing. She continued on her way.  
  
She walked slowly, watchful of her surroundings making sure nothing came up behind her.   
  
"Sora..." a small voice said. It echoed through the forest. Sora spun around, looking around her to where the sound was coming from. There was nothing and no one.  
  
She continued to walk, her legs moving faster towards the end.  
  
"Sora..." the whispered again. Sora's heart beat faster and faster, her mind was racing with thoughts, her hands trembled violently as they gripped tightly onto the handle of the sword. She breathed deeply, her breath shaking as she exhaled it.  
  
She felt an unexpected pressure on her shoulder, she quickly grabbed her sword and held it up the stranger. She breathed heavily as she stared at who it was.  
  
Taichi...she thought. Taichi had his hands up in the air as Sora held the sword to his neck. She slowly put it down, breathing a sigh of relief as she did.  
  
"Taichi, what the hell are you doing here?" she asked, putting the sword into the cover.  
  
"I told you I would come with you and I did," Taichi said walking ahead of her. Sora stared at him as he brushed past her as if she were nothing. Sora laughed softly to herself.  
  
"Why didn't you find your own way of getting it back before I did?" Sora said.   
  
Taichi just walked ahead, ignoring her rhetorical question. He was getting kind of tired of the girl's attitude toward him and he just wanted to get it over with. He walked ahead, hoping she wouldn't talk to him throughout the entire thing. Sora looked at his back...he had...wings. She examined them, wanting to touch the heavenly construction.  
  
Out of nowhere, an arrow shot out at Sora. She turned just in time for the arrow to pierce through her heart. Sora tried to duck, but her body would not move. She just closed her eyes in fear.  
  
Taichi grabbed the arrow with a swift movement of his arm. He threw it at the ground and continued on his way. Sora opened her eyes seeing the arrow on the ground. She stared up ahead at Taichi and continued to walk.  
  
"You know I will use all my power to destroy you..." a demonic voice said in the distance. Taichi and Sora looked up at the sky. Sora knew those eyes...they were so familiar. They were the eyes of the drill-toothed man. His eyes were red...and filled with water...  
  
"You know I will use all my power to take my Heart back," Sora replied angrily to the voice, gritting her teeth. It chuckled as the eyes disappeared. Out of the sky, a million stones fell. Taichi grabbed Sora's dress and pulled her close to him. He pulled his wings over them, protecting them from the heavy stones. Sora stared into Taichi's eyes. Her face was so close to his, she felt his warm breath against her face. Taichi looked into her eyes, breathing deeply as he clutched his wings.  
  
When Taichi stopped feeling the stones against his wings, he pulled them down, letting Sora out of his reach. Even though he let go of her, he wouldn't let go of his eye contact with her. Taichi continued to stare into her eyes...remembering the fire in her eyes as she stared at him. He quickly looked away. He told himself he wouldn't fall in love with her, for it was forbidden. Their love would never last.  
  
Sora quietly thanked him, looking down at her feet. Taichi nodded and told her to keep walking. She did as she was told and followed him.  
  
She stared at the stones that fell. Every moment would be dangerous for her, as a mere human could not win over strong, evil power such as this. These stones...they were not real stones, they were made of metal and more sharp than smoothe pebbles. They had edges that could cut through skin. She shivered at the thought of having another cut.  
  
"We've reached the end of the road," Taichi said, looking up at the violet sky. He looked at the large castle towering over them. It looked almost ancient. Vines had started to grow and destroy the old castle. They looked like hands, old hands reaching to get inside the fortress. Sora stepped forward, but Taichi grabbed her hand. She stared at him questioningly. "Be careful," Taichi said, letting go of her. He walked ahead, pushing the entrance door. Sora looked around curiously, but quickly followed after Taichi.  
  
In front of them was a throne. The designs were hypnotic circles of gold and red. Sora stared at the figure sitting at the throne. The figure had a hood on. It was black and white. Behind the figure were wings...not wings like Taichi's, but black wings. Wings like a bat. Sora looked around the figure, there six black panthers sat, staring at Taichi and Sora with yellow, glowing eyes. Sora looked at the panthers, noticing something around their necks. Chains...they looked like the chains on the Heart. Chains like the one the white women had put around her wrists.   
  
"Well...Sora...you have made it," the deep fiendish voice said. Taichi stepped in front of her, as if to protect her with himself. Sora stared at him. They barely knew each other and this young man was protecting her with his life. Sora stared at him angrily, this wasn't the way she wanted to finish this.  
  
"Yes I did, I am here for the Heart," Sora said as if he would just hand it over to her. The figure laughed and stood up. He pulled off his hood revealing his face. Sora stared at him hiding her fear. His face was fleshy as if his skin was torn off and could not grow back. His teeth were gold...and horribly sharp. She looked at the top of his head...he contained no hair, just a bare skull with throbbing veins surrounding it. The figure stood in front of her, his eyes smiled mockingly at her. He touched her face gently, tracing the the features on her face. Taichi grabbed his sword and held it to the figure's neck. The man laughed at him and stared intensely at him. Taichi felt his energy leaving his body. He felt his hands let go of the sword and get pushed against the throne. Chains circled his wrists, legs, and neck, clamping them against it. Sora stared at him painfully. He stared back, his eyes scared and defenseless. "Taichi..." she whispered, staring at him. She turned her eyes to the man...filled with hate and disgust.  
  
"Now you..." the man said. His face was disgusting, insects crawled across his face and throughout his clothing. Sora backed away, putting her hands on the sword. She held it tightly, getting herself prepared for any attack he might try on her. Sora kept her eyes concentrated on him.  
  
"Give me the Heart," she said, keeping her teeth together as she said it.   
  
"Never. Hmm...I will give you a choice...you get your Heart back or...you get your little angel back. Pick one and only one," the figure said.  
  
"Now why would I do that? I would rather die in the wrath of hell a million times than let you harm the two," Sora said, pulling out her sword.   
  
"What are you going to do with that?" he asked pointing at the sword. He laughed as his finger twisted sideways, making the sword fly out of her hands to the ground. She watched as the sword got absorbed into the ground. Sora looked at herself and realized she did not have a device mechanism to protect her. She stared at the figure. "Oh, you never asked who I was...I am so sorry I did not introduce myself...please call me Onii, Master of Darkness. I am here to destroy you for your heart is purer than any other heart. You have the power to destroy me but you are still very young and you do not know how to use your power. If I destroy you while you are still uneducated, darkness will conquer!"  
  
"Never! I will destroy you, get the Heart back, and get Taichi back! You will see...darkness will never conquer!" Sora yelled. Onii grabbed her around her neck. His long black nails sinking themselves into her skin. Sora closed her eyes as the nails pierced her, pulling her off her feet. Onii laughed throwing her toward the wall. Sora touched her neck painfully. She slowly got up walking up to him. She swung her arm at his face, but with one look, her arm turned back behind her, twisting it painfully.   
  
Sora forced herself to overpower him. She grabbed his arm and threw him to the ground, using almost all her strength. Onii laughed even more, thinking how pitiful she was, using her own human strength to defeat him. He stood up and carelessly waved his hand at her, making her back slam against the wall. He took one of the sharp stones that had fallen from the sky in the forest. He walked over to her.  
  
"Do you know what this is?" he asked. Sora glared at him, breathing hard.  
  
"I do not care," Sora replied, pushing him away. She got up and walked toward the throne. Onii scratched the walls with his nails, making a high-pitched scratching noise. Sora felt her ears dull in pain, but she walked ahead. She knew for a fact that this was not all of Onii's power, he was using it to see how much strength she had. She knew she would be powerless against him...but...what was this power he was talking about that she had? She stared at Taichi, who looked more and more frail each time she looked at him. He stared up at her weakly, having a hard time lifting his head...Taichi was losing a lot of blood.   
  
Sora grabbed Taichi's sword. She put her lips close to his ear and said, "Taichi...I will get you out of here." Taichi smiled at her with difficulty, and stared at Onii.  
  
"Sora? Be careful, Onii is powerful, and my sword can only do so much..." Taichi said, his voice croaking. Sora stared at the chains on his neck, red liquid smeared it and Taichi's clothing. Sora sighed and gently put her hand on the chains staring into Taichi's eyes affectionately. She looked back at Onii with angry eyes.  
  
"I hurt your little guardian angel?" Onii said mockingly. He was playing with her as if she were a mannequin. Sora ignored the question.  
  
She brought the sword up and shoved it into Onii's chest. Onii smiled at her and pulled the sword out with ease. Sora stabbed him again, but nothing seemed to work. She put it against his neck to slice it off, but Onii's power had bent the sword. Sora dropped it and stared at Onii helplessly. There was nothing to do. Then...she remembered the water she collected...but what would that do? Sora didn't know. She had to try. Sora held the sack, pulling it off of her dress. She stared at Onii.  
  
Onii noticed the sack she was holding...he knew what it was...it was the water he was forbidden to touch, for it contained goodness. He had a difficult time summoning his evil white women down to try and destroy Sora...but Taichi had been there...  
  
"You will fail with that liquid my dear child," Onii said softly. His eyes stared at her...using its power to throw her against the ground, knocking her out cold. Onii grabbed her body and put her on chains as well.   
  
When Sora woke up, her legs were wrapped in the barbed chains, as well as her arms. She looked at Onii laughing menacingly. She closed her eyes. This was the last straw...she didn't know what had happened during the time she had spent looking for the Heart...but it was long enough, she was tired of this Onii playing with her as if she were a play toy...as if he could use her for his pleasure. Onii laughed, holding his head back and scoffing. Sora felt anger boiling inside of her.  
  
"No that you are awake me' lady, you will see, with your very own eyes, and for your viewing pleasure, how the wings of your little angel will be torn out," Onii said, laughing as Taichi was brought out. The throne brought him in front of Sora, dropping him to the ground at her feet. Taichi stared up at her, using what was left of his energy to try and get up.  
  
Onii's guards grabbed him and dropped him on a metallic platform. Sharp, thick, bloody needles protruded from the chains the guards were holding. They clamped it around his arms and legs to hold him still. Taichi begged and pleaded as he moaned in pain, that they let him go. He shouted and cursed at the guards, feeling defenseless and tormented. Sora's bottom lip trembled as she watched two metallic arms grab Taichi's wings and pull them apart. Sora begged Onii to stop, for this act was the act of pure evil...murdering an angel.  
  
"Sor--Sora..." he choked. Sora struggled out of her chains, tears streaming down her face rapidly. Taichi wouldn't have been in this trouble if it weren't for her. Now she would have to save him. Her eyes turned cold and hard as she stared at the laughing Onii. The black horns on his bald, throbbing head seemed to dance playfully.   
  
Suddenly, a red light surrounded Sora, causing the chains to undo themselves on her. Onii stopped his amused laughing and stared at her as she picked up Taichi's unconscious body. He frowned but tried his best not to show his fear.  
  
Sora put Taichi down softly away from the chains. She walked casually to Onii.  
  
"I can smell fear Onii," Sora said smiling devilishly. Onii laughed feebly.  
  
"Rot in Hell Sora," Onii whispered under his breath.  
  
"And I will take you with me Onii," Sora spat back. She gently touched his forehead, piercing it with her finger. She shaped a heart design on it like he did with her. Onii screamed in agony, using his power to summon his dark allies as he pulled away from her grasp.   
  
A man with cobalt skin walked toward her, his tongue stuck out, wrapping itself around Sora's neck. Sora stared at him with a powerful glare, making his tongue circle his neck strangling the blue creature to death. Its pupils suddenly disappeared going backwards into the eyelids. Sora watched as the eyes bulged, red veins crept out into the eyes,   
turning them a deep red until the blue creature let go and dropped to the ground. Sora watched disgustedly as Onii's insects devoured the cobalt man.  
  
Onii threw out an army of white women, their pupils, as it did before, forced their way out of the women's eyes and came out as small serpents that grew into enormous ones. Sora stared, as millions of them looked down at her as if she was a mere caterpillar. Sora thought...Onii was right, she did not know how to control how much power she used, she   
just seemed to use them without instruction. But...she acted as if she did know...  
  
Sora held her hands up high, making the snakes rise into the air, their eyes turned a glowing yellow...staring hatefully...evilly...not at Sora, but at Onii. Onii stared at them as they stared at him. They slowly headed toward him.  
  
Onii swiftly moved his hand and the snakes disappeared. The girl was learning how to use her power quickly. He noticed that Sora had run to Taichi.  
  
"Taichi...you aren't going to die. You can't die...it's not your time..." Sora said, gently stroking his hair. Taichi smiled at her.  
  
"I don't know what else I could do..." Taichi whispered. Sora shook her head and looked down. She noticed the bag of the water she had gotten from the ocean. She grabbed it and gently put it on Taichi's neck and wrists. The wounds healed almost immediately. Taichi stared at his hands and rubbed his neck, nothing was in pain. He stared at Sora and smiled. "Sora? How can I repay yo--" but before he could finish, Sora put her hands on his face and kissed him. Taichi's eyes widened, he couldn't...Taichi felt different as Sora kissed him, he felt...  
  
"Never! Never...EVER will you get past ME!!!" Onii screamed lunging at the two. Sora was upset Taichi hadn't kissed her back but she quickly put the thought away and ducked as Onii went flying toward them. Onii flung a thousand sharp needles at them, but Taichi created a barrier with his wings, causing it to block the needles. Onii screamed and threw his insects at them, they had consumed human flesh before and were deadly poisonous. Sora threw what was left of the water at the insects, causing them to disintigrate. Onii closed his eyes and chanted something under his breath. His size increased...making everything seem like dust to him.  
  
Sora looked down at the ground where her sword had once been, making it rise out of the absorbing floor. Sora grabbed it.  
  
"Taichi! Get the Heart! I'll deal with this!" Sora yelled. Taichi ran across the castle to where the Heart was enclosed. He noticed a woman groaning softly while she was tied up near the Heart.  
  
"Sora...Sora's mother..." Taichi whispered. He untied the woman's straps and put her arm around his to support her. Taichi put his hands above the glass where the Heart was in, breaking the glass. He took out a small flexible blade and cut through the chains...he had never known the Heart was this small...it was as small as a fist. he put the   
Heart in a sack and walked Sora's mother to safety.  
  
Taichi ran back to where Sora was. Onii was lying on the ground, one of his legs looked as though it were disembowled. Taichi walked up to Sora as she held the sword to Onii's chest.  
  
"Sora...you know you will not be able to kill me, you have a pure soul and you will not kill the source of all that has tried to massacre you on your way here, somewhere you your soul, you knew that those were all just illusions I created to keep you away. That was why you destroyed them all...but me, nope, you will not kill me...I tell you...you do not have the Heart to..." Onii said weakly as he breathed heavily. Sora stared at him, her hands shaking as she kept her hold on the sword.   
  
"Sora, don't listen to him! Kill him! I got the Heart back..." Taichi said, taking the Heart out of the sack. Sora looked at him and took it. Taichi smiled at her. Sora sighed and held the Heart on her palm. It started to shine brightly, but Sora wrapped her fingers around it, making the light stop shining. Taichi stared at her discouraged. Sora put the sword on the ground and walked past Taichi, as if she had just given up. Taichi stared at her, hoping she   
would go back, but she continued to walk.  
  
"I knew it, the little girl was afraid...she is afraid of me even if I have all this power," Onii said, pulling the sword toward him with a magnetic power. Taichi noticed it as Onii pointed toward Sora. The sword headed straight for her. Taichi pushed her away, preventing her from getting struck by a sword in the back.   
  
Taichi looked down at her. She looked exhausted and filled with cowardice. Taichi touched her face and smiled at her.  
  
"Sora, you are pure like what he said. You are full of good and he is full of bad. If you kill him, evil will rain no more in this world," Taichi said getting off of her. Sora sat up and stared at Onii as he laughed a twisted laugh. He stared at Sora and growled. Sora grabbed her sword from the ground and walked up to him, thrusting it into his chest. Onii moaned as he touched his chest. He looked up at Sora, with disbelief in his eyes, then stared at the coal black blood on his hands.  
  
"It is not over...yet," Onii said.   
  
"Yes it is," Sora said, ramming it in deeper. Her hand shook violently as she did. Sora let go of it and fell to the ground. Onii just looked sickening, but he smiled at Sora and urged himself to stand up. Sora held the Heart out of her fist, making it release a strong light that blinded Onii. Blood poured out of Onii's ears...his evil face looked lifeless as Sora held the Heart in her fist once again. She closed her eyes. Taichi walked up to her and pulled her up.   
Onii...the Master of Darkness...was dead.  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
"Mother! I thought you had died," Sora said running to her. She cried softly smiling and relieved that her mother was not killed by the deceased Onii. Sora held the Heart up to her mother. She smiled, nodding softly to Sora.   
  
"The previous death of your mother that you watched was an illusion. He did that to make you think you never really loved her mother," Taichi said walking towards the two.   
  
"This young man is right. Onii left me in his castle as he went after you...Sora? I know you are really tired, let's go home now," Sora's mother said. Sora nodded, starting to walk ahead, but stopped and stared back at Taichi. He smiled at her, hoping she would just leave and stop himself from going crazy without her. But...he also hoped she would stay...for the same reason.  
  
"Wait mother...can I say good-bye to Taichi?" Sora asked. Her mother nodded and walked away.  
  
Sora slowly walked up to Taichi. She felt her heart become heavy. Sora stared into his brown eyes, she remembered the feeling of being close to him as he protected her from the stones. She felt her face get hot.  
  
"I...wanna..um...thank you for everything...and I'm sorry about that....uh...kiss," Sora said bashfully. Taichi shook his head.  
  
"No, don't apologize...um...well...I guess this is good-bye. You better go to your mother before she get's worried about you again," Taichi said, smiling weakly at her. Sora stared at him as he began to walk away. She wished he would do something. She stared at him expectantly, but frowned slightly and turned to walk to her mother.  
  
Taichi looked back at her, feeling sorrow fill his heart. He couldn't help but feel what he felt...something he wasn't supposed to feel...especially for a human...he felt love. He continued to walk, but each step he took just made him feel more sorry for himself than he already did.  
  
"Sora?" Taichi said, stopping. Sora turned around, feeling her hopes come up.  
  
"Yes?" Sora answered. Taichi smiled at her and walked in front of her.  
  
"I forgot to return that kiss you gave me," he whispered in her ear. Sora smiled as Taichi's fingers gently caressed her face, moving his lips to hers. Sora closed her eyes as she felt the soft pressure of his lips on hers. When she opened her eyes, Taichi had disappeared. Sora touched her lips gently and walked home.  
  
  
  
  
  
Hm...so...how was that? Sappy? Crappy? Please review.   
  
~nevathefantasy 


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